Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Palestinian media: Israeli vehicles fire at eastern Gaza City.
Al-Qassam Brigades: We will hand over the body of one of the occupation prisoners that was exhumed today in the Gaza Strip at 9 pm Gaza time.
Al Mayadeen correspondent to southern Lebanon: One martyr and one wounded in the initial toll of an Israeli drone strike targeting the town of Al-Bayyad.
Local sources report that a car bomb explosion has targeted the General Security headquarters near the Baniyas Court in the Tartous countryside, western Syria
Israeli artillery strikes target Khan Younis, the Gaza Strip.
Palestinian media: IOF arrest leader Jamal al-Tawil, who was liberated as part of the prisoner exchange, from his home in al-Bireh.
Palestinian media: 'Israel' launches two airstrikes on eastern Khan Younis, Gaza.
Al Mayadeen’s correspondent in Gaza: Israeli occupation forces carry out demolitions in eastern Gaza City.
Venezuelan Foreign Ministry: The National Armed Forces will remain on alert and mobilized in the face of this extremely dangerous provocation.
Venezuelan Foreign Ministry: This is not a defense exercise, but rather a military aggression aimed at turning the Caribbean into a space for violence and US hegemony.

Aid groups sound alarm in Libya as hopes fade for flood survivors

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 16 Sep 2023 16:20
  • 1 Shares
3 Min Read

Aid organizations are concerned about the growing risk of disease in Libya, compounding the humanitarian crisis, as hopes of finding more survivors diminish in the aftermath of flash floods in Derna.

  • x
  • Overturned cars lay among other debris caused by flash floods in Derna, eastern Libya, on 11 September 2023. (AFP)
    Overturned cars lay among other debris caused by flash floods in Derna, eastern Libya, on 11 September 2023. (AFP)

Aid organizations have sounded the alarm over the increasing risk of disease spreading, which could further exacerbate the humanitarian crisis in Libya. Hopes of finding more survivors dwindled as days passed since the deadly flooding.

Flash floods on Sunday submerged the port city of Derna, washing away thousands of people and homes into the sea due to two upstream dams bursting under the pressure of torrential rains caused by a hurricane-strength storm.

 As of Friday, there have been a minimum of 11,300 confirmed fatalities, accompanied by reports of 10,100 individuals who remain unaccounted for in the aftermath of the catastrophic floods.

In Al-Bayda, located 100 kilometers (60 miles) west of Derna, residents worked tirelessly to clear roads and homes of the extensive mud left behind by the deluge.

Aid organizations like Islamic Relief and Doctors Without Borders (MSF) have expressed concerns about the imminent threat of disease outbreaks and the challenges in delivering aid to the most vulnerable.

Libya is FLOODING. No one is talking about it. The top 1% globally are spewing more carbon than the entirety of the poorest 50%. And when disaster strikes the most vulnerable how do the rich respond? With silence. pic.twitter.com/hDCSC0GPEm

— Climate Defiance (@ClimateDefiance) September 10, 2023

Related News

Libyan authorities postpone reconstruction conference for Derna

How Western media sidelined NATO war role in Libya catastrophe, mayhem

Islamic Relief warned of a "second humanitarian crisis" following the flood, highlighting the "growing risk of water-borne diseases and shortages of food, shelter, and medicine."

The moment of flood hits Derna in Libya. #Flood #Libya #Derna pic.twitter.com/VUTIVZfVjW

— JournoTurk (@journoturk) September 11, 2023

Salah Aboulgasem, the organization's deputy director of partner development, emphasized the dire conditions faced by thousands of people, with a high risk of disease spread due to contaminated water systems. He noted that the city was filled with the stench of death, and almost everyone had lost someone they knew.

New video footage has emerged of the Libya floods, showing how streets turned into raging rivers in just seconds in Derna as nearby dams collapsed due to extreme rainfall.

Over 11,000 deaths have been confirmed, with another 10,000 still missing. pic.twitter.com/0SToym3QxJ

— Colin McCarthy (@US_Stormwatch) September 15, 2023

Meanwhile, MSF announced the deployment of teams to assess water and sanitation in the eastern region. Manoelle Carton, MSF's medical coordinator in Derna, expressed concerns about water-related diseases in such situations and described aid coordination efforts as chaotic. However, the Red Cross and the World Health Organization clarified that contrary to common belief, bodies of natural disaster victims seldom pose a health threat.

An AFP journalist in Derna described central neighborhoods on both sides of the river as resembling the aftermath of a steamroller, with uprooted trees and buildings, and vehicles strewn onto the port's breakwaters. 

Ahmed al-Mesmari, the spokesperson for the eastern-based Libyan National Army, stated that the flood had affected "over 1.2 million people," emphasizing the extensive devastation and disruption of transportation in the affected regions.

  • Libya floods
  • Libya
  • Floods
  • Derna
  • Derna floods

Most Read

'Israel’s Digital Iron Dome: Weaponizing the web against Palestine

'Israel’s Digital Iron Dome: Weaponizing the web against Palestine

  • Technology
  • 24 Oct 2025
Arab League chief exposes secret US deal shielding 'Israel’s' nukes

Arab League chief exposes secret US deal shielding 'Israel’s' nukes

  • Politics
  • 27 Oct 2025
Abu Hamza, the spokesperson for the Al-Quds Brigades, during a speech televised on October 22, 2025 (Al-Quds Brigades Military Media)

Al-Quds Brigades' Abu Hamza mourns leaders, vows continued resistance

  • Politics
  • 22 Oct 2025
US missionary kidnapped in Niger capital, suspected taken toward Mali

US missionary kidnapped in Niger capital, suspected taken toward Mali

  • Africa
  • 23 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
Delta Air Lines flight lands at Harry Reid International Airport, Wednesday, April 9, 2025, in Las Vegas (AP)
Politics

Nearly 3,800 US flights disrupted amid ongoing government shutdown

FILE - The Amazon logo is pictured at the Amazon Robotic Sorting Fulfillment Center in Madison County, Miss., Aug. 11, 2022. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)
Economy

Amazon to cut 30,000 jobs in largest layoff in company history

Eurofighter Typhoon Spain's Air Force fighter jets fly above the military parade marking 'Día de la Hispanidad', or Hispanic Day, in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025. (AP)
Politics

UK sells 20 Eurofighter jets to Türkiye in £8bn defense agreement

Smoke billows after drone strikes by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) targeted the northern port in the Red Sea city of Port Sudan, Sudan, May 6, 2025 (AP)
Politics

RSF tightens El Fasher siege as Sudan risks fragmentation: Reuters

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS